Jeri Shafer
Thomas Gall
Every year, the Dublin Irish Festival welcomes countless traditions, including running into Skelly the Leprechaun.
With his green hat and outfit paired with a bright red beard and big smile, Skelly can be seen around the festival grounds, greeting visitors and having a good time.
Beneath that iconic character is its creator – and only portrayer – Thomas Gall. A Columbus-native and performer at heart, Gall has a host of characters and stories from his years of dancing, singing and acting throughout central Ohio, and has no plans of slowing down.
Finding his passion
Thomas Gall
Gall's father (right)
Gall was born in 1955 and grew up in a small German Village home with his brother, Timm; mother, Betty; and father, Harold.
Growing up, Gall watched his dad perform with members of their family as part of a group they called Gall’s Entertainers. They performed all around central Ohio for years before winding down the group due to his dad’s health complications from polio.
Before the group stopped touring, Gall had the opportunity to perform with them when he was about 3 or 4 years old and was sold.
“I sang a song that my dad taught me, and I remember getting everyone’s applause,” Gall says. “And once you’re on stage, and if you feel that applause, you are smitten. And I guess that was it.”
Although his dad passed away when he was 11, Gall says he cherishes the lessons he learned from him and that he is a big part of what led him to pursue the arts in college.
Gall started his college career at Capital University and after two years, switched to The Ohio State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in music performance, with a focus in theater studies and a second bachelor’s degree in music education.
Thomas Gall
A leprechaun is born
City of Dublin
After college, Gall became the choir director at Northland High School while staying active in the community by performing with several church choirs and local performing arts groups.
Through these groups, he was able to connect with the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department, leading him to assist with its free summer concert series, Music in the Air, and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, where he produced, directed and co-hosted a weekly radio show called Ohio Outdoor Notebook for several years.
From there, he stayed in media, working with Zimmerman Public Relations and Publishing Group and Mills James throughout the 1980s.
In his role, he worked with numerous organizations, including the newly-founded Visit Dublin, Ohio; in 1990 the nonprofit contracted Mills James to create a promotional video for the City of Dublin that would highlight its Irish roots and is where the idea of Skelly was born.
“The general public, when they think about Ireland, they have the shamrocks and (the color) green, but everyone knows a leprechaun,” Gall says, “and so Skelly the Leprechaun was featured as the on-camera narrator.”
From there, Skelly took off as he quickly became a fan favorite, making appearances at the St. Paddy’s Day Parade and his official debut at the Dublin Irish Festival in 1992, where he has been a quintessential figure ever since.
City of Dublin
Gold at the end of the rainbow
Over the years, much of what makes up the Skelly costume has stayed the same. Although some costume pieces have been replaced due to wear, Gall says he does his best to care for all parts of the costume – from the tips of his pointy ears to the buckles on his shoes – to ensure it’s ready for Skelly’s next appearance.
Gall has enjoyed bringing countless characters to life over the years, but Skelly is one character who has reached beyond what he ever could have imagined. What started as an idea for an Irish narrator for a tourist video became a friendly face that people now look forward to seeing every year.
“People come up to me and say, ‘Oh, I had my picture taken with you when I was a babe in arms. Would you hold our baby?’ So, I’ve really been blessed,” Gall says.
As he prepares for his 35th Dublin Irish Festival this year, Gall is excited for another year and hopefully, many more to come.
“People ask me, ‘How much longer you got to do this?’” Gall says, “I say, ‘Well, God has blessed me with pretty good health, and hopefully I’ll have that for a long time.”’
Rachel Hanz is the lead editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at rhanz@cityscenemediagroup.com.
